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As I’ve discussed before, I primarily shoot indoors, and am always looking for ways to bring some of Mother Nature into my studio. Last year, I wrote a piece called “The Great Indoors,” highlighting some miniature fake grass I’d gotten for my photographs. Consider this post Part 2!

While I regularly use the grass for many of my photos, I actually have another staple that I turn to even more often: Sand!

Yes, its time. It’s sign-up time for the 2018 Toy Photographers meet-up. As I mentioned in my earlier post, I will be hosting my fourth annual toy photographers meet-up Memorial Day weekend. If you would like to join me, now is the time to officially sign-up.

I’ve listened to the comments from past participants and I’m making two big changes for this year: less driving for the entire weekend and a true meet and greet on Friday night. In fact the entire weekend will be designed for maximum, relaxing, toy photography fun. Continue reading Sign-up Time!

Last week I introduced a new hashtag, #nofigurefriday, and boy did it seem to go down well! I was happily surprised at how many of you took a chance at ditching the figure and shooting your accessories.

We had some absolutely brilliant photos shared with us featuring a range of accessories from all kinds of toys.

Last weekend Toy Photographers and #brickstameet held the Brickvention Charity Silent Auction of LEGO photography, raising money for the Royal Children’s Hospital Melbourne. With 27 amazing photographs, by 17 artists, from 11 different countries, I knew it would be a success. But there’s know way I could’ve predicted some of the wonderful moments that happened.

Here are some of my personal highlights from the weekend.*As the Brickvention Charity Silent Auction is about the art and the charity I’ve avoided naming specific artists in my highlights. All of you helped to make this event a success and a memorable weekend for me.Continue reading Brickvention Charity Silent Auction

Brett Wilson asked a while ago if conscience should go into toy photography. I think it should, and it should also go into art (and obviously into toy photography that aspires to be art).

Why don’t I like political art?

However, there is one kind of art that usually does not do the job for me. It’s what they call political art. Most political art is very efficient in getting its message across. A Parthenon made of forbidden books: Once you know all these books were sometimes forbidden somewhere, it seems to be hard to misunderstand this work. The artist may mean well, but I am not satisfied.

I do not care for the good intentions of the artist. I care for the kind of art that stays with you because you can never really figure it out although you would really like to. Continue reading Art and Politics

It’s Sunday, so you know what that means: Another episode of the Toy Photographers Podcast is now available!

This week, we have another interview episode, featuring our very own Brett Wilson! Brett and I had a fantastic conversation, covering how he got into toy photography, what it’s like having such a famous SigFig, how much luck has contributed to his many opportunities, and so much more! Continue reading Toy Photographers Podcast 03 – Brett Wilson Interview

After having seen Star Wars: The Last Jedi multiple times in theatres, I came away from the experience wanting to explore the new grizzly cynical old Luke Skywalker in my artwork. Of all the characters from the original trilogy, his story arc is by far the most interesting to me. So I went in search of a LEGO set that contained an aged-Luke minifig, and settled on the Ahch-To Island Training set.

Warning: Contains very minor spoilers, but nothing plot revealing.

When it arrived, I handed the building of the set off to my 8 year old son, Zeke, a proud LEGO and Star Wars fan himself, so I could get his opinions of the set from his perspective, as well as my own.

Have you seen the latest docuseries from Netflix: The Toys That Made Us? If not, you really need to put down what you’re doing and immediately binge watch all fours episodes of season one.

Rarely have I seen a TV series so perfectly aimed at toy photographers and toy collectors. Ok, I will admit I don’t watch a lot of tv so maybe I’m not the best judge. But I can assure you, you will enjoy at leastone of the first four episodes. Continue reading The Toys That Made Us

Well, maybe not quite without the toy, but certainly without the figure.

As toy photographers, we so often photograph figures. I mean, that’s the whole point right? Telling stories about and with our toy figures, be it LEGO, Playmobil, Hasbro, Hot Toys or any other kind of toy you photograph! We are photographers and story tellers and we love our figures.

That said, I wanted to try something different. So I started an ongoing series of photos featuring objects alone, without a figure, or only showing very small parts of the figure (a hand, for example). I wanted to tell some stories without characters. I wanted to showcase some of the wonderful accessories that are available to us. Continue reading Toy photography without the toy